Pashinyan: Peace Between Armenia and Azerbaijan Is Established, but Humanitarian Issues Remain Unresolved

TURKMENBASHI  – Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has declared that peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan is an established reality, although several humanitarian issues remain unresolved.

Speaking at the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) summit, Pashinyan noted that the agreement on establishing peace and interstate relations between the two countries was initialed on August 8, 2025, in Washington, during a summit hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House.

According to the prime minister, the agreement’s preamble refers to the Alma-Ata Declaration of December 21, 1991, while its first two articles reaffirm the parties’ recognition of each other’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, inviolability of borders, and political independence. Both countries also confirm that they have no territorial claims against one another and will not make such claims in the future.

Pashinyan emphasized that the Alma-Ata Declaration also serves as the foundation for the border delimitation process, as reflected in the regulations governing the joint activities of the two countries’ border delimitation commissions, signed and ratified in 2024.

“From this perspective, together with the President of Azerbaijan and with the assistance of our international partners, we have achieved what once seemed impossible. We must safeguard this peace every day because it serves, first and foremost, the peoples of Armenia and Azerbaijan and their future generations,” Pashinyan said.

However, the prime minister acknowledged that the peace achieved is not yet complete.

“There are still humanitarian issues that require resolution, including determining the fate of missing persons, demining, and matters concerning individuals held in detention,” he stated.

Reflecting on the peace process, Pashinyan recognized Russian President Vladimir Putin’s role in securing the November 2020 ceasefire. He also highlighted the October 6, 2022, meeting in Prague, initiated by French President Emmanuel Macron and European Council President Charles Michel, which reaffirmed the application of the principles of the Alma-Ata Declaration.

Pashinyan noted several developments in Armenian-Azerbaijani relations, including the absence of casualties or injuries from exchanges of fire for more than two years, the opening of Azerbaijani railway routes to Armenian cargo for approximately one year, the beginning of bilateral trade, and the delimitation and demarcation of a 12-kilometer section of the border.

He acknowledged that the adoption of the Alma-Ata Declaration in 1991 had failed to prevent the escalation of the conflict.

“For more than 30 years, the conflict continued despite the existence of the Alma-Ata Declaration, whose principles seemed to have been overlooked. To establish lasting peace, it was necessary, figuratively speaking, to revive those principles,” he said.

Turning to regional transportation and economic cooperation, Pashinyan outlined plans to implement the TRIPP project within Armenian territory.

Under the Washington Declaration, the initiative is intended to unblock regional transportation routes, including uninterrupted connectivity between mainland Azerbaijan and the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic through Armenia. It would also provide connections between Armenia’s northern and southern regions through Nakhichevan, while respecting the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and jurisdiction of the countries involved.

The project is expected to create new East-West and North-South transit opportunities, including a potential railway connection between the Persian Gulf and the Black Sea through Iran, Nakhichevan, Armenia, and Georgia.

Pashinyan also expressed expectations that the Armenia-Turkey border would reopen and transportation infrastructure would be restored.